CPW4U - Grade 12 Canadian and International Politics
Course Description For CPW4U Grade 12 Canadian and International Politics Online Course
This course allows students to investigate political issues, events, and developments of both national and international importance, developing and communicating informed opinions about them. They will explore political decision-making and the ways in which various individuals, groups, and institutions address political issues both within Canada and internationally.
Summary Of Units And Timelines For Grade 12 Canadian and International Politics CPW4U
Below is the suggested sequence of course unit delivery as well as the recommended number of hours to complete the respective unit. For complete details of targeted expectations within each unit and activity, please see each Unit Overview found in the CPW4U course profile.
| Unit Order | Unit Name | Suggested Time |
|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | Introduction to Politics | 25 Hours |
| Unit 2 | Government and the Political Process | 25 Hours |
| Mid Semester Point | ||
| Unit 3 | Canada and the International Political System | 25 Hours |
| Unit 4 | Issues and Answers: National and International Politics in Practice | 25 Hours |
| Unit 5 | Independent Study Project ISU Research Report (ongoing) | 10 Hours |
| Total | 110 Hours | |
Fundamental Concepts Covered in Grade 12 Online Course
Effective learning in all subjects of the social sciences and humanities curriculum depends on the development of skills and understanding in four areas:
- Disciplined Inquiry and Critical Literacy: Social sciences and humanities courses focus on the use of disciplined, structured inquiry to understand human beings, human behaviour, and human nature. These courses promote the use of reason as part of the structured inquiry process, while also recognizing the limitations of reason as a way of learning, knowing, and understanding. They encourage students to identify and question assumptions and values that underlie individual behaviour and family and social/cultural life. Developing their critical literacy skills enables students to challenge texts, reading “underneath, behind, and beyond” texts and questioning how they influence us and others and whose interests they serve.
- Problem Solving: Social sciences and humanities courses require students to engage actively in solving problems confronted by individuals, families, diverse groups, institutions, and societies. The problems that students confront in these courses vary from the abstract and theoretical to the everyday and concrete. These problems are often morally and politically complex, with solutions that are sometimes controversial because they affect diverse individuals and groups differently.
- Understanding of Self and Others: Students in social sciences and humanities courses are provided with rich opportunities to enhance their self-understanding and understanding of others through an examination of their personal belief systems and also of the foundations and implications of different viewpoints and lived experiences of others. Through a juxtaposition of their own perceptions, attitudes, values, and beliefs with those of others, students develop an understanding and appreciation of the contexts through which their own and others’ world views are formed.
- Local and Global Mindedness: Social sciences and humanities courses develop students’ awareness that people do not live in isolation; each person affects and is affected by his or her social, cultural, economic, and environmental context. Students examine the norms underlying different familial, societal, institutional, and cultural practices. Students are encouraged to be mindful of their responsibilities with respect to the environment and of the importance of making morally and ethically responsible decisions. Students explore how theories and concepts can influence social action, and how such action can affect the well-being of individuals, families, and communities throughout the world.
Teaching and Learning Strategies in an Online School
Teachers will bring enthusiasm and varied teaching and assessment approaches to the classroom, addressing individual students’ needs and ensuring sound learning opportunities for every student. The activities offered should enable students to relate and apply these concepts to the social, environmental, and economical conditions and concerns of the world in which they live. Opportunities to relate knowledge and skills to these wider contexts will motivate students to learn in a meaningful way and to become life-long learners. Teachers will help students understand that problem solving of any kind often requires a considerable expenditure of time and energy and a good deal of perseverance. Teachers also will encourage students to investigate, to reason, to explore alternative solutions and to take the risks necessary to become successful problem solvers. Effective instructional approaches and learning activities draw on students’ prior knowledge, capture their interest, and encourage meaningful practise both inside and outside the classroom. Students will be engaged when they are able to see the connection between the scientific concepts they are learning and their application in the world around them and in real-life situations. Due to its importance, students will have opportunities to learn in a variety of ways- individually, cooperatively, independently, with teacher direction, through hands-on experiences, and through examples followed by practice. The approaches and strategies teachers use will vary according to both the object of the learning and the needs of the students. Teachers will accomplish this in online environment with the use of: virtual labs, online simulations, animations, videos, discussion forums, live chat and other interactive objects.
Assessment & Evaluation
As summarized in Growing Success 2010, the primary purpose of assessment and evaluation is to improve student learning. Information gathered through assessment helps teachers to determine students’ strengths and weaknesses in their achievement of the curriculum expectations in each course. This information also serves to guide teachers in adapting curriculum and instructional approaches to students’ needs and in assessing the overall effectiveness of programs and classroom practices. As part of assessment, teachers provide students with descriptive feedback that guides their efforts towards improvement. Evaluation refers to the process of judging the quality of student work on the basis of established criteria, and assigning a value to represent that quality. All curriculum expectations must be accounted for in instruction, but evaluation focuses on students’ achievement of the overall expectations. A students’ achievement of the overall expectations is evaluated on the basis of his or her achievement of related specific expectations. Teachers will use their professional judgement to determine which specific expectations should be used to evaluate achievement of overall expectations, and which ones will be covered in instruction and assessment but not necessarily evaluated. In order to ensure that assessment and evaluation are valid and reliable, and that they lead to the improvement of student learning, teachers must use assessment and evaluation strategies that:
- Address both what students learn and how well they learn
- Are based both on the categories of knowledge and skills and on the achievement level descriptions given in the achievement chart
- Are varied in nature, administered over a period of time, and designed to provide opportunities for students to demonstrate the full range of their learning
- Are appropriate for the learning activities used, the purposes of instruction, and the needs and experiences of the students
- Are fair to all students
- Accommodate students with special education needs, consistent with the strategies outlined in their Individual Education Plan
- Accommodate the needs of students who are learning the language of instruction
- Ensure that each student is given clear directions for improvement
- Promote students’ ability to assess their own learning and to set specific goals
- Include the use of samples of students’ work that provide evidence of their achievement
- Are communicated clearly to students and parents at the beginning of the school year and at other appropriate points throughout the school year.
The achievement chart for mathematics outlines four categories of knowledge and skills. They include; knowledge and understanding, thinking, communication and application. Teachers will ensure that student work is assessed and/or evaluated in a balanced manner with respect to the four categories, and that achievement of particular expectations is considered within the appropriate categories. A final grade is recorded for this course, and a credit is granted and recorded for this course if the student’s grade is 50% or higher. The final grade for this course will be determined as follows:
- Seventy percent of the grade will be based on evaluations conducted throughout the course. This portion of the grade should reflect the student’s most consistent level of achievement throughout the course, although special consideration should be given to more recent evidence of achievement.
- Thirty percent of the grade will be based on a final evaluation and administered towards the end of the course.
Accommodations for students with an IEP in an Online School
All students can succeed. Some students are able, with certain accommodations, to participate in the regular course curriculum and to demonstrate learning independently. Accommodations allow access to the course without any changes to the knowledge and skills the student is expected to demonstrate. The accommodations required to facilitate the student’s learning can be identified by the teacher, but recommendations from a School Board generated Individual Education Plan (IEP) if available can also be consulted. Instruction based on principles of universal design and differentiated instruction focuses on the provision of accommodations to meet the diverse needs of learners.
Examples of accommodations (but not limited to) include:
- Adjustment and or extension of time required to complete assignments or summative tasks
- Providing alternative assignments or summative tasks
- Use of scribes and/or other assistive technologies
- Simplifying the language of instruction
Resources
Teachers will bring additional resources and teaching materials that provide a rich and diverse learning environment. Units in this course profile make specific reference to the intended textbook for this course but can be substituted for any relevant and approved text.
Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) Requirements for all course.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is CPW4U?
CPW4U is a Grade 12 Canadian and International Politics course at a University preparation level.
What are 4U courses?
4U refers to the Grade level of the courses and the pathway. 4 means it is a grade 12 course and U means it is a university preparation course.
What is the prerequisite course for CPW4U?
Prerequisite: Any Grade 11 or 12 university (U) or university/college (M) preparation course in Social Sciences and Humanities, English, or Canadian and World Studies.
Click here for more information on Ontario secondary curriculum and their prerequisites
How long does it take to complete the CPW4U online course?
At Ontario Virtual School (OVS) you can complete an online highschool credit courses as quickly as 4 weeks, or take as long as 12 months.